Tunes and stories of Elemental Tales

Giftsvamp speaks about the new album:

..."What we really wanted to do this time, is to get rid of complexity and dull groove elements of the previous release. Svartby means "fun", we are one of the merriest bands in folk-metal, so that's what we want to give you this time. It will be a very fast album, it's just one big, evil and crazy headbanging."

"We invited very skilled musicians for voice, bass and drums on this album. All of them are our oldest friends, but of course we chose them for their talents. And you know, they recorded all their parts as if they played with Svartby for years! Anyways, you shouldn't expect any style changes, it's Giftsvamp's & Lindwurm's composing talent that brings Svartby forth all this time. Humla, our new guitarist, also adds some fresh vein."

..."As for the recording process, we worked with Alex Bolotov one more time. We did "Riv, Hugg och Bit" and "Scum from Underwater" with him, so we were happy to return to Rock Syndicate studio once again. A perfect professional, he's what the band would ever wish from a sound engineer, hearing the slightest and tiniest tempo and note deviations. Also, he is never shy to call the really bad pieces or craziest experiments a "full shit" and delete it :) As usual, we recorded at a slow pace - from February to July, taking breaks and working thoroughly on our parts and sound. So "Elemental Tales" is something we are very proud of."

"Expect the childish mean elemental devils here. They're so cute to fall in love with them with the first sight, and so evil and merry to perfectly fit the Svartby's family. Blood and destruction they deliver to humans, but so sweet they are :) and now for the tracks:"

01. Impby. Meet the finger-tall elemental imps, the little horned and tricky devils - the new Svartby's dwellers! Six elements are bound to the circle of Svartby's magic: Fire, Water, Air, Earth, Wood and Mushrooms. A classical Svartby's keyboard intro will provide you a mystical and bouncy tune, accompanied by nasty giggling of elementals :)

02. Scum from Underwater. Finger-webbed water imps are a real pain in the ass to the humans who dare to swim or sail across the ponds and rivers... Splinters and blood, the work of underwater scum! Hope you've already heard the track, it's a pure thrashing rage, with orchestra hits and mallets only supporting the severe guitar grinding!

03. Boulder Massacration. Imagine the striding tree-tall clay giants, kicking hills and houses and smashing roofs with enourmous boulder fists... These stone-and-mud "mechas" are a piece of art of earthen imps, who sit and guide in their big, bald and quite empty heads. This song has a slower pace, heavy as an avalanche and relying much on profound horns' sound. Giants' roars and imps' mad laughs included.

04. Sleepy Devils. Winter time, and it's sooo sleepy for elemental imps. The song is a tender frosty lullaby for the devils, waiting for the spring to awake. If you've ever heard any Svartby's ballad, you'll know what to wait from this track :) Tender, but mighty and epic lullaby, with soul-ripping tunes. Humla's guitar solo is to make it a definite hit song :)

05. Mushroom Rings. Spores of the magical mushrooms round up villages, mushrooms grow tree-tall and invincible... Everything inside the creepy mushroom rings becomes sleepy and grows old very fast, turning to ash and dust in few days... It's one of the most unusual songs, vivid enough and with slow epic choruses. What is unique about it, Mushroom Rings carry a strong oriental scent. At the rehearsals, it's called "let's play the Japanese one".

06. Done with the Wind. Small hurricanes, the air imps, make a real disaster in the villages, blasting the windows and turning everything upside down with precise wind blows. That's a definite pearl in the crown, one of the fastest songs on the album. Bouncy rhythms, and epic strings' leads to make you fly ) Well, it's Air element after all...

07. Ash and Dust. It's an instrumental which may remind you of a western movie :) Try to cope with your desire to drink 0,5 l whiskey and rob a couple of trains, and you'll plunge into the beautiful melancholic melody of flute, harmonica and chimes, accompanied by acoustic guitars... Wander across the village ruins and smell the stench of burnt animals and houses. What happened here is -

08. Flaming Balls. Night is a perfect time for the fire show! Fire is the perfect element to lay massive destruction on fields, barns and backyards. Well, that's pure rage of the flame element - very fast song with accordion leads. Mad screaming fits well for vocals!

09. Morning Wood. Have you ever slept in a hut far in the forest? Remember how freaky it is when twigs scratch you window in the night? Well, one day you awake in the unknown morning wood, your house carried away in thicket by the mighty roots... Flutes and epic strings for the mighty swift track, the song is just a present for those who understand the woods...

10. Elemental Tales. On the winter safe nights, grannies tell the tales about elemental imps scaring their children... Sleep tight, don't cry, it's not summer yet, and our house is safe... Until the imps awake! Quite cheerful song with mysterious scent, you can't make the title track dull, no way, sir!

11. Imp Slam. And that's just a merry keyboard instrumental. Some bells and mallets will deliver a nice bonus melody for you :0)

Elemental Tales is coming this Autumn at Trollzorn...

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